The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - May 19, 2026

Starting point is 00:00:04 Well, howdy folks. Today is Tuesday, May 19th, and you're listening to the Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texan senior editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, President Donald Trump endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over incumbent U.S. Senator John Cornyn on the second day of early voting for their U.S. Senate Republican primary runoff. Trump stated in a truth social post, quote, Ken is a true Maga warrior who has always delivered for Texas and will continue to do so in the United States Senate. The president added, quote, John Cornyn is a good man and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough. Paxston responded shortly after Trump's announcement,

Starting point is 00:00:51 stating that he was honored to have Trump's complete and total endorsement. Cornyn also responded to the endorsement, touting that he has voted with Trump more than 99% of the time and calling Paxton, quote, a weak nominee who jeopardizes everything we care about. Cornyn and Paxton headed to a runoff after the March 3rd primary election resulted in them being the two top candidates, although neither collected a majority, with Congressman Wesley Hunt knocked out of the contest. Early voting for the primary runoff began on Monday and will conclude on Friday. Election day is Tuesday, May 26th. In other news, the Texas Supreme Court ruled against petitions to remove Democratic members of the Texas legislature, including Texas House Democratic

Starting point is 00:01:36 Caucus chair, Gene Wu, over last year's quorum break. Last August, House Democrats fled the state in order to block GOP-led congressional redistricting. Despite efforts by the governor and attorney general, the court ruled that the members will not be forced to leave their offices. The news comes several weeks after the Texas House approved $8,000 fines for the members who left the state in protest. Last year, Governor Greg Abbott filed a quo waranto petition after the quorum bust, asking the Supreme Court of Texas to declare Wu's office vacant on the basis that he forfeited it by fleeing the state. Abbott called Wu the, quote, ringleader of the derelict Democrats who fled the state to break quorum. Attorney General Ken Paxton was also involved in the petitioning, targeting 13 Democratic members,

Starting point is 00:02:24 who fled the state in a plea for them to likewise be removed from office. Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock, who delivered the High Court's opinion, was appointed by Abbott in January 2025 to serve as the court's 28th Chief Justice. He formerly served as Abbott's General Counsel. Last but not least, Texas Children's Hospital in Houston will open a detransition clinic as part of a settlement it reached with the U.S. Department of Justice and Texas' Office of the Attorney General, over its staff performing medical transition procedures on children even after child gender modification was banned in Texas. The OAG's press statement described it as the country's first ever detransition clinic.

Starting point is 00:03:05 For the first five years of its operations, all services provided through the clinic will be free of charge to its patients. The hospital also agreed not to perform gender modification procedures and to pay over $10 million in damages and civil penalties for its past actions, according to a DOJ press release. The $10 million will go toward resolving allegations that Texas children submitted false billing records to public and private payers to get gender modification prescriptions covered. Texas passed Senate Bill 14 in 2023,

Starting point is 00:03:37 which banned gender modification treatments and procedures for Texans under 18 years of age. The Texas Supreme Court upheld the statute in June 2024. Attorney General Ken Paxton said in his press statement, quote, today is a monumental day in the fight to stop the radical transgender movement. This historic settlement reflects an institutional and fundamental cultural shift away from radical gender ideology. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit the Texan.News to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - May 19, 2026

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